One Day May We Meet Again, Albrecht
by Useless Dopant
Summary: A cruel heart resting within a mechanical body that held a most pleasurable poison running through its veins. In spite of being worlds away from her beloved, she would endeavor to see him again. These most precious memories were all she had of him but she desired more. To protect him. To fight for him. To love him. Yes, one day they will meet again.
1. Chapter 1: Prologue

**I own nothing but the scenario. All characters belong to their respective owners.**

_"Thoughts"_

"Speaking"

**Skill**

_foreign term_

* * *

The entirety of SERAPH was falling apart. Pleasure and anguish ran rampant through this digitized environment, all for this finale. 'It' was ruled by an overwhelming sense of failure as it surveyed the quickly collapsing world. 'It' no longer lived in the realm of the living. There was nothing left but 'its' rapidly failing consciousness that somehow persisted past the destruction of its body wrought by the plotting of the monster he had given birth to.

Feelings it had obtained- humanity- made its consciousness regret the struggles and pain it had inflicted upon the humans manning this place. They were long gone. In spite of the inhumane experimentation done here, in this digitized platform, most were innocent. The goodness of man, the evilness of man; he had grown to love it all.

His thoughts came to the peculiar existences that struggled and succeeded in ending the woman turned monster. That one who dealt the final blow; such a beautiful but brief existence. Those memories accumulated here along with her kin would never reach that distant, isolated place called Chaldea.

Something stirred, painfully, within the being. Mana began to build as the entity began one last ritual that would end with its absolute destruction. 'It' had wrought nothing but anguish and there would be no way of making it up for those lives already lost, but those brought here…

It was something that had very little chance of working and what 'it' could call its heart grew pained knowing that Beast had a chance of reincarnating if it did succeed, but despite that, those that were brought here as a sacrifice to fulfill a simple grudge deserved better. Especially she, who could not go where her progenitor went. Yes… One day that beautiful dancer would meet her Albrecht, again…

* * *

**Location: Another World**

The vastness of space fascinated him. Despite housing an entire universe, he was still so insignificant in the face of the innumerable number of stars and planets that lay before him. All of these planetary bodies scattered across a black void upon he was but a speck of dust.

It was a sort of aimless drifting, his travelling. Anything fascinating he could find he would analyze and at times take in for further investigation on a later date. It was during those moments of curious drifting that he stumbled upon a free floating piece of… something. Its surface shone an artificial blue color with properties most peculiar. It flowed like water yet it didn't freeze in response to the coldness of space. Upon further analysis it was something made of pure data. Such a curiosity couldn't be simply left to float away into the unknown void.

The decision was made in haste. This unknown variable was taken in, it quarantined until further analysis of it could be made.

* * *

**Location: Bara Magna**

A cloaked and masked being sat up from his previous resting position. He had felt something, something that had disturbed the dimensional boundaries of the world.

Taking a moment to stretch his worn body, the being strode out of his hidden cave to the desert scenery outside. A female clad in all black armor greeted him. With the patterns etched onto her ancient armor along with an ebony spear sporting crimson patterns planted beside her, it was apparent that she was a Skrall. "You've sensed it haven't you? With the powers gifted by Annona and enhanced by me, you've felt the dimensional intrusion."

The female of the duo responded to the inquiry, "I have." Without any further words, she dug her armored hands into the sands underneath, pulling out a saw bladed shield, etched onto its surface a circular maze. Taking up her spear, she stood at her full height, "Do we make journey, Angonce?"

"Yes, yes we do."

There was silence within the hidden valley as its two occupants left for a location unknown to all except them.

* * *

**Location: Within Mata Nui**

A digital parody of primordial soup stirred deep within the Protodermis Vault. No solid consciousness composed this substance. The consciousnesses of many raged and clashed with one another in a dreamlike haze, and amidst the chaos, 5 beings blended into one before slipping through minute cracks in the wall. Pieced together from aspects of others around a fragment of a Cancer was more than enough to slip through the foreign walls.

As these fragments flowed through the behemoth body, they split apart.

One subsumed a landscape as it rained from the artificial heavens above.

One rested, looking down upon an orderly city descending into something dystopian

One bonded with the sea-life around it as its simple consciousness began to go rampant in revelry of its monstrous strength.

One slept deeply among a horde that imposed order and cleanliness above all else.

And the last flowed with the sea, coming to a halt as it washed ashore a utopian city.

There it would've rested, but a shadow fell upon the fragment, fascinated by its properties as it prepared a blood soaked invasion of the city it was meant to observe and protect.

* * *

**Leave feedback in the reviews. have a good day. **


	2. Chapter 2: Awakening

**I own nothing but the scenario **

"dialogue"

_"thoughts"_

* * *

Location: Xia

Timeframe: 2,500 yrs before the Great Cataclysm

The mechanical churning of Xia's factories and machinery rang loud and clear. Crowds of reptilian biomechanical humanoids moved back and forth. These people were called the Vortixx and this was the peak hour in which the most number would be moving around running their errands and performing business deals within their massive, island spanning, industrial city.

It was among this hustle and bustle that 2 Vortixx, one blue, one grey, moved upstream through the various crowds. The grey one, a male, carried upon one shoulder a crate. The blue one, in contrast, was female and carried nothing as typical of the Vortixx matriarchal society.

Though a typical sight, what was so strange was their moving through the crowds. Their movement was towards a distant stronghold. Vortixx rarely went there for the resident didn't accept business offers that often. When he did, they were mostly long term developments that required his personal supervision. The stronghold in question belonged to a Makuta, Makuta Kojol, and the two Vortixx seemed to be of the exceptional few who managed to broker business with the reclusive scientist.

* * *

It was before the stronghold that the pair were stopped. A different reptilian, one that was completely mechanical and hunch backed in stark contrast to the upright Vortixx stopped them. The mechanical being was a Rakshi. It chirped multiple times towards the pair before readying its staff threateningly, energies beginning to build in the staff.

The only response from the pair was to pull out a hand sized tablet. Upon inspection, the Rahkshi relented and resumed its post as guard, it making a signal to other Rahkshi who came down from the fortress walls, escorting the Vortixx into the stronghold.

* * *

Within the stronghold's courtyard lay an innumerable number of tools scattered about where various Rahkshi and giant arachnids, Visorak, sorted through the junk for their master. The pair of Vortixx though, knew better than to believe all that was on the surface, especially when they caught sight of a Visorak moving what resembled a mechanical arm into a seemingly innocuous pile of scrap.

Quickly the pair were escorted into the stronghold's main building. It was a multi floored complex with the furnace being in the building's basement along with the main lab. The escort stopped at the door to the main complex. There by the door was a slot, a perfect fit for the lead Rahkshi escort's staff to slot in.

Before the Rahkshi could load their staff into the keyhole, a sudden cracking sound broke through the silence of the fortress. The entire escort lay on the ground, unmoving. Their backs all held a clean slice that cut through the back plating, destroying the snake like Kraata inside.

With a quick gesture from the blue Vortixx, the grey Vortixx put the crate that it had on its shoulder onto the ground, within a set of armaments for both. For the blue being, a spiked mace and shield. For the grey one, a massive dagger and a bladed staff whose head was fashioned to resemble a snake's.

After a quick equipping of tools, the taller of the duo aimed his staff at the protodermis door, an energy beam reducing the door to molten slag which the two carefully stepped over and into Kojol's lobby. It was there that after a minute of careful observation of the lobby did they find the trigger that opened a pathway into the basement.

* * *

It was a massive room that the duo came upon as they reached the basement lab. At the center was a pool of glowing substance, Energized Protodermis. Within that same pool was a tube that contained a humanoid figure. Their form was shrouded by the glowing blue cloudy liquids that resided within. Next to the pool was a dark figure. His silhouette gave off a slim, masculine shape. Upon his form was armor that consisted mainly of blacks with gold platings that highlighted details such as the chest, legs, and arms. The mask this being donned was beaked, giving off an avian motif to the ensemble.

Red eyes turned quickly towards the duo as they descended the footsteps the figure spoke, his voice cultured and with a hint of haughtiness, "So you are the prospective craftsmen who I will be collaborating with this cycle. You know you should've exhibited some patience. I would've gotten to you both eventually. I only needed some time to perfect my latest creation."

Before he could continue the arms that were once crossed behind him fell off from the joints. In that same instant a beam of energy shot forth from the smoke colored Vortixx's staff, annihilating the torso of the figure. A pair of legs fell backwards onto the ground limply.

There was a silence that permeated the room only cut through by a female, authoritative voice, "We know you're alive Makuta Kojol, your decoy won't fool us this time."

Within the darkness of the lab, haughty laughter could be heard, "So the remnants of the self righteous and destructive Hand of Artakha come to kill me ey? Such bluster! Such impudence! Who sent you? It must've been Artakha himself. Still mad that I killed his assistants and stole his oh so precious Mask of Light? Arrogant craftsman, that one. Should've sent more and besieged this entire island."

There was a sound now, mechanisms moving as the tube began to drain of its liquids, revealing a figure strung up with wires. Their colors were predominantly silver and black with hints of navy blue scattered about on its armor. Fused with the armor were a series of bolts that went down the being's spine. The Makuta's laughter intensified as the blue Vortixx's hands tightened into fists. "Familiar isn't it? Yes, yes my newest creation; hybridized from Toa components." The wires hanging the figure disconnected. This creation landed on silver, stilt-like blade legs that made the being stand a few inches taller than the two Vortixx. The grey Vortixx placed a hand on his blue counterpart's shoulder, her hands relaxing. "It's best that you drop your disguises now, there isn't any point as I know who both of you are." After the Avian scientist said his piece a shadow blast struck where the duo of invaders once stood.

Vacant blue eyes scanned the two combatants as they ran. "You see, I am not that inclined towards combat like my fellow brethren. It is for that reason that I have endeavored to rectify such shortcomings in the form of this creation. She doesn't quite possess a name yet and hasn't been tested until now." The amalgam of Toa components leaped high into the air, her leg extended into an axe kick which the blue one was forced to block. The azure Vortixx's form faded, in its place an armored figure with a vaguely similar design with the Makuta weapon. After a brief power struggle the black and silver figure was forced back, twisting and executing a back flip back onto solid ground.

The azure Toa's eyes widened upon seeing the damage dealt to her Protosteel shield. A gash in the shape of the bladed appendage was etched onto the surface. "Not that pleasant, yes? My beloved puppet possesses more than just physical feats. You best be on your toes around her." The puppet charged again towards the Toa, a veritable wall of water came from nowhere that surged forth to meet her charge. It was for naught as the stilts wearing foe kicked and generated an equally large wall of water which clashed and cancelled the Toa's. Flying over the clashing of liquid protodermis was the acrobatic amalgam, she landed before the Toa who had instinctively backed away with orbs of water floating behind her azure form. On bladed legs, she skated across the ground as if it were ice and easily sidestepped the enemy combatant's precise jets of water. Her charge though was cut off from blasts of superheated plasma.

Bulldozing his way into the fray, the male Vortixx's disguise dropped, revealing a tall, gunmetal colored figure donning a mask of the same design as his azure compatriot. He stood at equal height with the bladed puppet. Together both infiltrators charged their foe in a joint counterattack.

Though their combined efforts were overwhelming to any ordinary enemy, their acrobatic enemy wasn't like any conventional foe that they had ever fought against. Her combat capabilities were nothing to snuff at, being able to attack and defend in quick succession. Sheer natural speed and dexterity allowed it so that she didn't suffer so much as a scratch in her fight. Any attempts by the Toa to utilize her element was instantly countered by the amalgam's equally powerful water attacks.

After a particularly large wave of water washed over the battlefield both sides separated, giving the two invaders time to convene briefly. "This is getting nowhere Tobduk," The male of the duo merely nodded his head as he kept his green eyes trained upon the blue eyes of his silver armored foe. "With the silence that has fallen in this chamber I am certain that Kojol has left the basement area. I'm going to have to ask you to keep her busy by yourself while I pursue him." the identified Tobduk pulled out and donned a mask, one having a multitude of rough edges in contrast to his previous, smooth mask. His voice, tinted with thinly veiled blood lust responded, "I understand, Helryx."

The now identified Helryx nodded her head before her mask was aglow in blue light. In place of Helryx were now 7 Toa of Water. Together with Tobduk they charged. The silver and black puppet responded with a charge of her own. When the two forces met the 7 Helryxes were gone. Tobduk alone fought in a fast paced clash of staff, dagger, and leg blades as his female superior made her way up the basement stairs in pursuit of the Makuta scientist.

* * *

It was the familiar digitized backdrop of S*r*p**x that had greeted M****i*t*. Yes, it was another supply sortie that she had been placed in charge of by ******. Her enemy this time was the charitable hero *ar**. He was low on mana thus he was incapable of using his damnable armor, Kav*c*a and K**d*l*, which worked just fine with her.

It was a quite easy dodging K****'s strangely slow strikes. The strength of his strikes increasing in power the longer the fight went on. Despite this **l* was confident. All it would take was one fatal strike from her blades and it would all be over. But despite this, she had a sinking feeling in her gut. Everything seemed odd. Like-

-static-

It was the familiar digitized backdrop of S**aph** that had greeted *e*****i**. Yes, it was another supply sortie that she had been placed in charge of by R**s**a. Her enemy this time was the charitable hero *a**a. He seemed more impatient, less composed. It didn't matter to her though, all it would take was one fatal strike from her blades. But it seemed odd, Karna didn't possess a knife Noble Phan-

-static-

It was the familiar digitized backdrop of S**aph** that had greeted ***t******. Yes, it was another supply sortie that she had been placed in charge of by *i*s**a. Her enemy this time was the charitable hero K**n*. He was emphasizing more upon the usage of his Brahamstra for some reason. It mattered little; once she closed the distance and ran him through with her blades it would be all over. But it was odd, noble phantasms like Karna's spear shouldn't be so damaged from her *e** Viru-

-static-

It was the familiar digitized backdrop of *er**h*x that had greeted M**t******. Yes, it was another supply sortie that she had been placed in charge of by ***s*ka. Her enemy this time was the charitable hero K***a...

* * *

After donning her signature Mask of Psychometry, Helryx quickly sprinted forth. Her hand grazed the wall of the basement wall as she made her way back up to the surface level and for that brief contact gleaned the reclusive Makuta's pathway. It was this knowledge that allowed her to discern that he was making his way up into the stronghold tower where his secondary lab was located.

It was when she reached the lobby that she came face to face with what Kojol left behind in his dash to his secondary lab. Before Helryx was a massive strike team of Rahkshi and Exo Toa.

Focusing her latent elemental powers, water began to manifest around her in a protective orb. Taking a leap towards the stairs to the second floor, the assembled minions charged her. Despite the overwhelming numbers they were unable to pierce the bubble, the powers maintaining it smoothing the surface causing energy blasts to be deflected or roll off the barrier, minimizing or outright erasing any potential damage dealt.

Committing to a headlong charge, water pressure began to build at the soles of Helyx's boots before she shot like a rocket, turning herself into a veritable wrecking ball of water and knocking down any enemies foolish enough to get in her way. An Exo Toa attempted to block her path at the top of the stairs but was promptly bisected from a pressurized blade of water.

Passing the ruined machinery and into the second floor she was met with a hallway. Kojol's fleeing form could barely be made out in the distance. With a clattering of machinery behind the walls, various sections of the hallway began to be sealed by protodermis doors. In response a large orb of water the size of Helryx's torso took form, floating in front of Helryx's chest. With a burst and a sound akin to a saw cutting into wood, an aqua jet sliced into the door, slashing it open. Running while maintaining the orb, Helryx toppled every single succeeding obstacle in her path until she caught up with Kojol.

The avian themed Makuta flew above the center of the lab, his haughty form looked down upon her. Within his grasp held an unknown staff weapon. A chuckle came from the black armored being. "You see this weapon Helryx? It is what I would call an Eater Staff. Even before my betrayal of Artakha I was manufacturing viruses that could topple a Tahtorak. Among these viruses was a Protodermis- Eating Virus, something whose effects you've seen today with your shield. This weapon is meant to use such power to its fullest capability. You shall be the first victim of this weapon, a perfect test subject!" A sinister glow began to build within the staff, it's end pointed at the oddly unmoved Helryx.

Orange eyes met red as the staff fired. But instead of a beam that shot fatal poisons at the azure Toa, the staff exploded in the arrogant Makuta's hands. A horrid scream echoed through the lab.

* * *

Going into another roll that barely avoided cutting water, Tobduk ran to maintain his distance from the servant of Kojol. Rage bubbled beneath his focused visage. It empowered him but he had to also reign himself in unless he wanted to leave a fatal opening. _"She's just too slippery!"_ Firing another pinpoint accurate beam of heat at her position he had to raise his already worn dagger in defense to parry her bladed appendages. It well and truly pissed him off that her blades had a similar, if not same strain of Protodermis Eating Virus that Kojol had developed before his betrayal of Artakha. If it weren't for the virus he could've easily overpowered the damnable amalgam when she got close and shattered her ridiculous legs.

Tobduck grunted with effort as he made a swing for his silver enemy with his staff. She immediately dodged and began to spin like a dancer to make another pass on the Gunmetal colored male. _"I have to create distance between her and myself!"_ After a successful dodge and creating a smokescreen via firing on the ground with his staff, Tobduk began to look around himself. The pool of Energized Protodermis caught his eye. It was an extremely volatile material that was customary for Makuta to have in their labs.

As the smoke cleared, the black and silver terror sped towards the repositioned gunmetal infiltrator. Mask aglow, from Tobduk's hand flew a silver blur. The amalgam dodged and as she got closer, the male combatant fired four times with his staff, the bolts exploding behind and in front of his enemy. As the puppet jumped high into the air to prepare a spinning axe kick on Tobduk, the same silver blur thrown earlier, his barely functioning dagger, flew back. For the first time in the fight, the abominable creation twisted raised her right gauntlet midair and intercepting the knife. Her leg was also raised to block an anticipated attack from her masked opponent. It was for naught as superheated plasma was shot, at the pool beneath her.

An explosion of glowing silver liquids bathed the creation. It was a gamble on the tall and lean operative. The Energized Protodermis could enhance or destroy the creation. If it enhanced the puppet then he would be screwed. Luck seemed to be on his side though as the latter began to occur. The armor of the puppet was sloughing off as the Energized Protodermis came off her form. Among the pieces of armor that fell apart were the variety of nodes that had lined her spine.

Taking a step then halting completely, the puppet stood motionlessly, vacant eyes staring back at Tobduk's green. _"Well, that's done. Hopefully my sabotage of Kojol's supplies have left him armorless and vulnerable to Helryx enough for her to take down without issue."_ As the tall operative made a move to leave the puppet began to glow a pale blue color with the Energized Protodermis evaporating off her armor surface. With the liquid no longer damaging her external body, she moved.

Verdant eyes widening, Tobduk raised his staff to block the heavily damaged weapon but instead of a kick as anticipated, the glowing puppet flew past Tobduk and up the stairs. _"She's being called up by Kojol!"_ Taking off immediately, the operative sprinted up the stairs to the second floor of the stronghold.

* * *

It was a maelstrom of shadow and lightning that lashed out with tendrils of nearby wiring and machinery. Helryx, with her extensive training and experience granted by her long life, expertly avoided all the strikes. The Makuta was simply lashing out in his pain. Much of the armor he crafted for himself had been disintegrated by the focused dosage of Protodermis- Eating Virus thus he seeked to rectify this via grabbing what machinery he could to stem the Virus that was quickly spreading to consume his body. Shadow Hands were blindly casted out by Kojol in an attempt to absorb as much as he could, many of them aimed in Helryx's general direction.

The havok Kojol was wreaking on his lab suddenly died down, the maelstrom ceasing as Helryx's instincts screamed at her to move. Barely, the old Toa of Water threw herself to the side as a blue, glowing blade crashed down upon where she was standing a millisecond prior. After regaining her bearings, she caught sight of the heavily damaged puppet. It gave her some modicum of joy at seeing the doll in such a state but she grew worried for her subordinate. That worry was quickly rectified as Tobduk came onto the scene.

Quickly, the puppet joined Kojol's side, whose body had been reduced to being maskless, armless, and armorless. His quickly reassembled body looked like a walking pile of scrapheap rather than the masterpiece of workmanship worthy of Artakha like his previous body had been. With Helryx and Tobduk, both were intact though the prolonged combat that they experienced was taking an obvious toll with clear heavy breathing and signs of battle damage on their equipment, Tobduk's being the more apparent of the duo with massive gashes all over his staff and a small bit of battle damage to the gunmetal bits of his armor.

There was no longer any grand posturing from Makuta Kojol. His haughty attitude faded away with his maelstrom as he sized up his puppet. He then turned his gaze towards the two interlopers with dark energy beginning to form around his being. Helryx and Tobduk readied themselves in anticipation for the final battle between the two forces, but this standoff was cut off with a sudden sound of metal rending metal.

* * *

Her thoughts were in chaos. Her head pounded like a jackhammer. Who was she…? She… was Mira… Toa Artakha of Water and pupil of… No.

That wasn't right. Not right at all. She wasn't a 'Toa' or anything from this foreign world. She was an Alter- Ego… she-

The pain intensified, along with an intense static sound. Her eyes saw with clarity for the first time what truly lay before her. It was a workshop that was marked by an intense battle. A cold numbness dominated her body as she felt the creep of exhaustion dominate her core.

Two figures stood before her. A niggling feeling of familiarity came to her when she looked at the azure, feminine, armored figure. That feeling felt so alien to her as she didn't recognize her at all. The pain magnified the moment she turned and looked at the figure that stood beside her. That armless, broken figure.

Feelings of resentment bubbled. Laughter came to her ears. A memory.

A massive raid. Overwhelming numbers. Hulking machinery overpowering warriors she called 'brothers'. Shame. The feelings of guilt and failure to protect what was most dear to her. The feelings of weakness as her 'Hau' was knocked away from her. Finally, unbearable pain as her legs were taken from her, crushed by cold machinery. Throughout the memories that same laughter and crimson eyes that seemed to smile at her and her team's agony was everywhere.

Her anger frothed and boiled over. She was a hedonistic being who indulged in whatever she felt, it was only natural that she acted upon the source of her anger. In a sudden movement, her right leg shot out like a bullet, impaling itself into the breast of the walking scrap heap.

A horrid scream of agony, only magnified due to her uncalibrated state, rocked her skull but alongside that feeling, one of strength, began to build. It trailed from her grotesque leg and into her body. She was draining the entity, and while doing so, felt the most pleasurable high.

Snapping out of it she gazed upon the two others. Despite the resurgence of strength, the numbing feeling still dominated her being, her- a word came to her- 'mana' was drained. In the eyes of the combatants held both shock and aggression. In the state she was in, she wouldn't be able to take the two. As her leg fell away from the scrap heap that crumpled to the ground, she moved her body. With haste she sped to the side and into the closest exit not blocked by something or someone: a window.

Without hesitation, she leapt from the window, a great leap that allowed her to fly past a massive fortified wall outside and into the murky waters below.

* * *

Helryx and Tobduk rushed forward, as their steps skidded to the edge they looked out from the stronghold's window. No sign of the puppet below and no sign of her on the fortress battlements. The only other place she could be was off the cliff. Both highly doubted such a fall into Xia's polluted waters would do the puppet in, but for now, they had to focus on their original objective, assassinating Makuta Kojol for knowing the location of the Island of Artakha. Both turned on the downed form of the Makuta, an idea of quickly and covertly disposing the incapacitated being quickly forming.

* * *

**So as usual leave a review if you feel the need to. Have a good day **

**Regarding Kojol and his raid on Artakha, yes he does exist in canon and did raid Artakha for the Avohkii. He was assigned by the Brotherhood of Makuta to steal the mask for the light of the Avohkii was a massive threat to them. Indeed in canon he was done in by Tobduk. To my knowledge there isn't any proper description on how the assassination went down except that Tobduk arranged for the Protodermis Eating Virus to be released onto Kojol, and later on, the other Makuta finding his remains in a furnace on Xia. Their reaction is the exact same as in canon. The changes I made were to the existence of the Toa Artakha. I find it only logical that a Toa team was assigned to Artakha's island and thus used them as fodder for the plot. **


	3. Chapter 3: Prelude for Things to Come

**All characters belong to their respective owners**

* * *

Location: Order of Mata Nui HQ

Helryx was within her meditative chambers. The soreness that had taken hold of her body began to unravel. As she relaxed into comfortable meditation she began to contemplate the knowledge she had gleaned from her Kanohi mask.

Her mask was the Great Mask of Psychometry. It was a Kanohi mask that allowed her to read the history of objects she came into contact with. It was how she tracked down Kojol in the fortress and it was how she was capable of leading strike teams to coordinate deadly accurate counter strategies against those that would stand in her and her organization's way.

In her most recent operation with her subordinate Tobduk, she had gleaned much of what Kojol was researching within his labs. Though incapable of completely stemming the flow of information on what she wanted, she managed to at the very least see what he had done to Toa Artakha.

Toa Artakha, as the name suggests, was the 6 manned Toa team that was in charge of patrolling and protecting the Island of Artakha, the island ruled by the island's namesake, master craftsman Artakha. She had personally trained them as she herself had been stationed on the island when she lead the defunct organization, The Hand of Artakha. They were to be her and her organization's replacements while she and the then recently founded Order of Mata Nui would move elsewhere.

They were deemed missing in action in the aftermath of the raid of Artakha. Makuta Kojol, the Makuta stationed on the island, had become corrupt and constructed a raiding force that swept the island. It consisted entirely of Visorak, Rahkshi, and Exo Toa. The Visorak and Rahkshi were beaten away by Crystal Serpents stationed outside the fortified Utopian city but the Exo Toa were not deterred, breaching the city walls and overwhelming the city's defenses with sheer numbers. It was under these numbers that the Toa team disappeared.

By the time Helryx and her forces appeared on the island, Kojol's forces were in full retreat, leaving the island on large ships. There was an attempted pursuit but the Kojol she encountered that day was a fake meant to throw off Artakha's forces and the Order of Mata Nui. It was only in the aftermath that she had found out about the theft of the Avohkii, the Great Mask of Light, which Kojol was responsible of.

The usually benevolent and lax Artakha had flown into a rage, demanding the deaths of all who knew of his island's location and the destruction of all records detailing said island's location. It was with a heavy heart that she gave the command to Tobduk to kill any Order of Mata Nui member that knew of the island's precise location.

The master craftsman decreed that now no one was welcome to the island unless Artakha himself recognized and allowed them to stay on the island. It was that command to kill all who knew of Artakha's location that brought her to Xia. It was there where she found out about the fate of the Toa Artakha and the entity that Kojol had experimented upon to forge a perfect tool.

She was unaware of the origins of this alien entity for the tools Kojol utilized weren't present when he had first taken it in. What the instruments did remember were the various experiments that occurred. Easily permeable Protodermis became absorbed into the substance, creating a tightly knit material with the same properties as water but no matter what, material refused to part with itself. The bonds persisting despite Kojol's best efforts. It was the exposure to Energized Protodermis that caught his attention. The material resonated, glowing a strange blue glow as the Energized Protodermis went completely inert. Power radiated from this alien liquid and thus Kojol seeked to discover and use this substance to its fullest potential.

He had first experimented with using Exo Toa but that failed. The internal systems became overloaded, the capacitors that were built to absorb and utilize a Toa's elemental powers were unable to handle the potent energy that came from the liquid. It was then that the avian themed Makuta implanted the liquid into an empty Rahkshi husk. Kojol at first thought it was a success but the Rahkshi proved to be a bit… braindead. The Rahkshi moved and exhibited strength that surpassed regular Rahkshi but with a lack of a proper brain, the liquid was extracted and the Rahkshi scrapped. Afterwards, he devised a hypothesis that the liquid required a functioning brain thus a specimen was to be found and utilized.

Rahi didn't make the cut. Their brains were simply too underdeveloped to perform what Kojol wanted. It was then that the raid on Artakha happened. The perfect opportunity presented itself with the capture of the 6 Toa guarding the city. Suppressing the disgust on what her brothers and sister experienced under the morally bankrupt Makuta, Helryx delved further into the gleaned memories.

The liquid exhibited a rather violent reaction when taking over a Toa's nervous system, especially when it reached the brain. There would be a violent rejection and the death of the Toa. Autopsy showed that the nervous system and other bits of biomass was processed while the brain ultimately died from shock. The pain of being turned into a vessel for the material was too much for the host to bear. It was only with the last Toa test subject did the experiment bear fruit. Unlike the others, Kojol had decided to lobotomize the Toa of Water. The liquid took to the Toa of Water's body without a hitch.

Now it was time to build upon the Toa's body. The legs of the Toa had been destroyed completely by an Exo Toa. She was the last one standing during that raid and put up the most struggle.

A curious thing happened when replacements were crafted and grafted to the stumps. The prosthetics fused completely as if they were always a part of her body. It was within projections but what wasn't were the legs mutating. The legs turned into blades. Knee armor extended into a sharp point and the soles of her feet grew into bladed heels that extended enough to give the puppet a good head in height above a Toa.

After this memory came the one memory that worried Helryx the most. The strange liquid began to leak and flow through the bladed bits of the puppet. It was a strange virus that was similar yet different from the pre- existing Protodermis- Eating Virus made by Kojol. Unlike the Protodermis- Eating Virus, this one was one that aggressively absorbed and enhanced the user, unlike the virus strain possessed by Kojol which only destroyed. The virus only responded to command from the puppet, thus Kojol began to preemptively install control nodes onto the puppet before a proper consciousness could be formed.

He planned to eventually use and directly control this new virus himself hence why he had the being placed into stasis for further study and the adding of additional armor to enhance the being. This was where the memories end.

This puppet was still out there somewhere and gathering strength. It was at this point in her thought process was Helryx interrupted by footsteps that came towards the door to her personal chamber. With the weight behind the steps she could accurately guess who it was. "You may enter, Jerbraz." With an affirmative from one of the best and self proclaimed best spy of the Order, the eternally invisible Jerbraz entered her chamber.

"I have returned and bring with me the report on Xia." With a gesture, Helryx had Jerbraz continue. A floating tablet was procured from nowhere with which Jerbraz began to read from, "The Brotherhood of Makuta wasn't exactly happy of the assassination of Kojol. In the aftermath of discovering unsalvageable fragments of Kojol's Antidermis essence within his own lab's furnace and eye witness reports of two Vortixx being last seen entering the Makuta's stronghold, the Brotherhood had a portion of Xia decimated and the resident Vortixx of that portion made an example of. Security has tightened on the island and with that knowledge in hand, it is my personal recommendation to not re-infiltrate the island."

After a pause to process the information Helryx responded, "Thank you for your report, you may return to your post and recommence spy operations at your discretion." With an imperceptible nod, the invisible operative left Helryx's chamber, his footsteps echoing in the hallway signifying that he had left the room.

Taking a deep breath, Helryx returned to meditation, pondering on both the information presented to her on the Brotherhood's response to Kojol's assassination and what course of action she should take on the rogue creation of Kojol's.

* * *

Location: Unknown

The island she had awoken on was now but a distant memory for her. It was instinct and muscle memory that allowed her to swim so smoothly through the ocean she had dove into. Her body was still acutely numb but she could feel water leak into the various chinks of her damaged armor. Wounds were apparent as water flowed past muscle tissue, hampering her movements as she swam.

Something within told her that being numb to most everything was normal for her, but this numbness felt different, absolute. The only reason why she was even capable of such deep analysis of her body was something she felt akin to a nervous system. It was a system of fluids that flowed throughout her body and fed back into the core of her being.

Despite this lack of fatigue something deep within her knew that it wouldn't be able to withstand going at this pace. There was no landmass nearby to rest her body. Ideas of turning back were snuffed out as the risk of going back to… "_Xia_"... was simply too high. The liquid circulating through this body started to be more sluggish. She had a feeling that that was a sign that this body would give out soon, if not its physical limitations it would be its lack of air. The added weight of this body and the holes punched into its form from battle made it oh so much harder to surface.

Feelings of defiance came to her. She was given a second chance at living and she couldn't waste it. Someone's face came to her. It wasn't biomechanical nor did it seem like anything special. What stood out to her were the feelings associated with it. Love. Desire. Longing. Sadness. Blue eyes that shone with understanding, affection, and a bit of mischief. An honest smile. All of these features framed by black hair that served to complement his features. It was a stray thought, one that echoed throughout her being, "_I need to get back to him._"

Like instinctively flexing a muscle, her body became aglow with a soft blue color. The surrounding water began to siphon into her being. The feeling of both rejuvenation and of something forming on top of the damage that she had accrued came to her senses. It was then that she realized the water around her was one and the same material that made up her body. An alien term came to her. _Protodermis_. This was what this material was called?

The term just fit. Something foreign yet familiar assailed her. A defiant and unreadable train of thought in the back of her head. She felt a migraine coming on.

A past memory came to her. No, a past directive. Not from the scrap heap scientist but something much, much older. It was to shake off foreign interference. She focused the blue energy that flowed through her, running it through her body. For the first time she felt a comforting warmth overtake her. Yet still that migraine persisted, though it had gone down to a dull ache.

She arose from the depths to take in air. An idea, a blueprint, came to her. That same blue energy -M_ana_\- ran through her once again but instead of trying to fight off some sort of influence, she began to shift her body. She wasn't someone who possessed a Self Modification skill -what was _Self Modification_?- but she was familiar with the principle. Gills began to form under the surface of her armor. The external casing of her body parted to accommodate the extra set of organs. Now with that complete, she needn't worry about surfacing for air and could focus upon keeping herself moving.

She would eventually reach land, sometime, she thought to herself. The liquid around her, Protodermis, could sustain her until then… right?

* * *

Location: Metru Nui

The harsh impact as she fell on her rump rattled her mask. A pair of yellow eyes stared dejectly as shadowy blurs zipped overhead. Resigning herself, the Matoran lay flat on the arena floor and closed her eyes to shield himself from the harsh light as the match slowly came to an end.

The noise died down as footsteps approached the Ga Matoran's form. "Hey Pari! Nice save there although too bad you didn't score any points…" came the voice of Kodan. The Po Matoran came to a halt as the named Pari opened her yellow eyes to meet Kodan's orange ones.

Breaking eye contact with a head tilt to the side, the Matoran scoffed. "Hey, cheer up. Next game'll be better" Kodan encouraged.

"Yeah… right...next game." Pari let out a sigh before picking herself up the ground and finding her discarded _Disk Launcher._ The still dejected Matoran began walking off towards the arena exit with Kodan quickly following.

"Hey… we can practice and you'll get better, heck you showed much more potential than I did when I first started Akilini!" Ignoring Kodan's words, the Ga Matoran kept walking, her direction obvious as she approached the district's chute.

Turning back towards the still following Metru Nui Chronicler, Pari finally spoke, "Look Kodan, I only played Akilini because we were friends before your occupation as Metru Nui's Chronicler, but you've changed." Within the Ga Matoran, she knew that wasn't true as the jeers the Ga Matoran had heard behind her back surfaced in her mind. Clearing the emotions that bubbled to the surface, the Pakari masked Matoran continued, "I have my responsibilities now and so do you. I have little spare time nowadays and I would rather have it focused on more worthwhile tasks. Goodbye." Turning away before she could see the hurt look in the Po Matoran Chronicler, the Ga Matoran leapt into the magnetized liquid and sped off, ignoring her friend's pleading words.

Eventually, the Ga Matoran came to her home Metru, a still being decommissioned statue of Toa Tuyet greeting her arrival. Time flew as she sped past a number of Ga Matoran posting posters on a wall in the docks. The words Pari didn't read looking like a warning, accompanied by a depiction of a Matoran on a boat being attacked by tentacles from the ocean.

A Matoran approached as Pari readied her boat. There was worry in their eyes as they spoke words of warning but those words never reached Pari's ears. She revved the motor of her boat and sped off, nearly splashing water on the now angry, but still worried, Matoran.

...

...

...

Cool air brushed against her armor as the Matoran took in the scenery around her. This was how she cooled off as the dark thoughts left her. After a few minutes she opened her eyes and went to the boat's back, preparing to rev the motor and get back to shore.

Before she did, the Matoran noticed something in the water. A shadowy shape moved in the depths causing her to panic. Her hands flew to the motor but she was knocked off her feet as a claw dug its way into the boat's metallic body. Water frothed as Pari recognized the pincers as those belonging to a _Parakrekks_. The appendages tightened, the boat shattering and sending Pari flying.

Upon making contact with water, the Ga Matoran began to swim as fast as she could. Something caught her leg, a stray tentacle. Looking down, she expected to see the Parakrekks responsible for destroying her boat but she found no sign of the hulking carnivorous amphibians. In fact, the tentacle that had latched onto her leg was gone. The depths of the Silver Sea greeted her as for the briefest of moments, devoid of any life forms much to the Matoran's confusion.

Suddenly, something tugged her. It was a vortex and she was caught in its grasp. Yellow eyes widened in fear as her limbs were incapable of overcoming the sheer power of its pull. Before long she was deeper in the ocean depths, her lungs burning. A crushing pain crept up from below as Pari became aware of her limbs being pulverized by the same unseen force that had dragged her to her doom. Her lungs were vacated of remaining air as the crushing force consumed her.

For weeks earlier, there had been multiple sporadic reports of increasing unknown Rahi sightings and disappearing Matoran. With Pari's disappearance, the Chronicler's attention was drawn towards these cases, spawning an investigation that would eventually lead towards the reconvening of the Toa Mangai. Though ultimately, the many waves of Rahi would be repelled, the cause of this unknown mass migration of First Rahi would never be found out. The remains of the many presumed victims of this incident, such as Ga Matoran Pari, would never be found.

* * *

**If you have some criticisms and other subjects related to this fanfic leave a review. Have a nice day!**

**Kodan was the Chronicler of Metru Nui. He is credited with the creation of Akilini, the Metru Nui sport involving Disk Launchers. **

**Parakrekks are vicious amphibious Rahi that come in swarms and eat anything they can get their claws on. They usually follow in the wake of rampages caused by Protocairns: larger, more destructive Rahi that came to be from Matoran mutated by Energized Protodermis. **


	4. Chapter 4: Skirmish In the Digital Sea

**All characters belong to their respective owners, I own only the scenario**

* * *

Location: Somewhere in the Silver Sea

It was nightfall now. She observed multiple _Rahi _swimming in the ocean depths but they ignored her completely. Her armor had been completely repaired with certain changes made to it. It was now designed to decrease the drag her regular form, ground form, would have had normally. The knee blades she once had a prominent example of this change with it currently folded into her legs seamlessly.

Her sense of identity though, was still a complete mess. When she attempted to delve deep, it was a confundling mess of foreign and familiar memories. The only thing that she could take from the memories was a name and identification. Meltlilith, the Alter Ego of Pleasure.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt vibrations within the water. Multiple shapes made their presence known to the swimming Meltlilith. The term _Takea Shark _came to mind.

Apparently she intruded upon the territory of the sharks, resulting in them charging the intruder with much ferocity. _"Hmmph, as if I would be felled by a school of simple Rahi" _Righting herself she readied her legs on the oncoming sharks.

With their group growing close to Melt, she made out a total of 4 sharks. Unusual due to their hunting habits but not impossible. She unleashed a series of kicks to the ones approaching her. Some innate control over water Melt found she could tap into made it all too easy to maneuver away from each shark's charge.

At first it was just a process of harming them enough to either kill or force them to swim away, but with each strike she dealt to a Takea, the pain in her head intensified. _"Why… WHY?!" _The headache wasn't allowing her to focus as some of the Takea's charges began hit their mark. _"Monster! Foreigner!" _A female, foreign voice yelled in her head.

The Takea sharks' head butts brought a shock of pain. Though she didn't feel it, the impact was enough to further disorient her. She pointed her leg out as a shark charged her, the blade impaling itself upon and killing the Takea. A second charged her which she responded by a slash to the eye, sending the shark reeling. Another came, this one getting its head lopped off which only further increased the headache. A fourth came by, a slash to the stomach that gutted the Rahi put it down.

The second, scarred one came charging again. "_Leave my body at once!"_ The headache was excruciating and her vision began to distort from the pain. As the Takea shark came close, Melt's leg raised upwards, the resulting slash tore open and killed the Takea but it didn't stop its momentum. The carcass crashed into Melt. That, coupled with her headache, caused her to lose consciousness completely, her body floating aimlessly in the Silver Sea.

* * *

Location: Metru Nui Outskirts

Two sets of steps echoed in the quiet and serene valley. It was a location between the Great Barrier and the Metru Nui outskirts that the Toa Mangai of Water had made her home. The place, isolated from the hustle and bustle of Metru Nui and a place Rahi seldom visited, made it ideal for meditation.

Kodan, the Po Matoran Chronicler of Metru Nui, along with the Toa Mangai of Earth, Nihu, trudged through the uneven terrain as they made their approach towards the innermost parts of this little known location.

Nihu ducked his head as he followed Kodan under a cavern entrance and into a grove alight from a convenient hole in the ceiling. Within the center, with light highlighting her bluish silver and dark azure armor, sat Toa Mangai of Water, Naho, as she meditated.

Verdant eyes opened and met the pair of gazes from her fellow Toa Mangai brother and Kodan the Chronicler.

"Is there something you need of me, Nihu?" spoke the Toa of Water.

The Toa of Earth, jovial as ever, seemed to open his mouth before taking pause. Placing a hand on his significantly shorter companion, he pushed the Chronicler forward and spoke, "Technically yes, though this is less of me needing your help and more like the city of Metru Nui needing our help."

Taking that as his cue, Kodan spoke up, "Yes… There have been many sporadic reports of Ga Matoran going missing on fishing trips. There even is one of a few Bordakh patrolling underwater routes going missing. Alongside these were multiple sightings of unknown Rahi. When brought up with some Onu Metru Archivists, they mentioned that these may be what are known as First Rahi."

Toa Naho got up, causing Kodan to take pause. The green eyed Toa Mangai gestured for the Matoran to continue, and so he did, "Just a day ago, one of my closest friends, a Ga Matoran, went missing. It was what brought this to my attention and from my investigations there may be a crisis on our hands. I've already asked Turaga Dume, and he has authorized me to request you and the Toa Mangai's aid. As a Matoran of Metru Nui, I beg of you, your assistance!"

Smoothly, the Toa of Water responded, "And I accept, Chronicler." Looking up to make eye contact with the Toa Mangai, Kodan gave a weak smile. He thanked her as she turned and picked up her Toa tools, a bow.

Upbeat, the Toa of Earth smiled underneath his Kanohi Kakama as he addressed his sister in arms, "Well then, I guess it's time to move and gather the rest of our motley team, eh sister?"

"Yes, indeed" Came the sister's response.

Although the image of serenity, the Toa of Water held a few insecurities as she followed the Chronicler and Toa of Earth from her abode. It had been so long since the Toa Mangai had gathered last, and she was unsure of how she would approach and reconnect with the others, especially when the image of a gold armored Toa of Fire came to mind.

Location: Unknown

Meltlilith awoke in a haze. She felt off. Her body didn't feel as tough; more squishy. Also the feeling of her body had been restored, as distorted as it was.

The rustle of cloth caught her attention as her eyes readjusted to the bright light of her surroundings. She looked down at her clothed arms and chest. Pale, exposed skin was visible beneath her black outfit consisting of cloth and metal. Her armored legs were the only thing that her and her mechanical body shared in design.

It was without effort that she got up from her previously sitting position. The familiar feeling of her long hair fluttering about and acting as a curtain for her face was a comfort. Standing upright now, she began to look at her surroundings. It was a deep sea that seemed to be cordoned off from flooding by a glowing blue framework. Nostalgia blossomed in her heart as she looked all around.

With, at first, unsteady footsteps, Meltlilith approached the edge of a digital wall. It was a spiral that went down, down, down when she tilted her head in an attempt to follow the structures' trajectory. As the depth increased, the framework blocks that consisted this environment became more and more chaotic. Familiar and unfamiliar structures lay scattered, floating in the void.

The ambience of the scenery was shattered when a female voice rang out in the void, "So the Makuta spawn finally shows herself here!" Melt turned in the direction of the voice only to be met with a blast of water. Skidding across the ground from the force of the blast, Melt managed to stab a bladed appendage deep into the ground. It was then that the high pressure blast of water that had buffeted her, stopped. The sound of air being displaced caught her attention causing the Alter Ego to look up.

Blue eyes met glowing yellow as a biomechanical being donning a mask with 6 vents scattered on their cheeks and 1 on the forehead came down upon Melt. Within the being's hands were a pair of dual axes, one larger than the other. Pushing herself out of the way, Melt was placed on the defensive as the azure aggressor immediately charged her with a flurry of strikes. After a series of blocks Melt regained her bearings and interrupted the series of strikes with a powerful uppercut from her bladed legs forcing the armored being back.

The words tumbled out of Melt's mouth, "Who are you!?" The eyes of the azure combatant narrowed as she muttered something to herself before raising her voice, "I am Toa Mira, Toa Artakha of Water. Pupil of Helryx and guardian of the Island of Artakha." The identified Toa placed herself into a combat stance, "Also apparent vessel to you, parasitic cur." Before Meltlilith could muster a response the Toa charged again, this time orbs of water framing her shoulders.

In the second flurry of strikes Melt found herself boxed in as the orbs of water began to shoot themselves at her like bullets as Mira struck again and again. It was during this deadly dance of water and steel did Melt notice that her legs weren't corroding the axes. Noticing the plum haired Alter Ego's center of focus Mira spoke with a hint of smugness, "Noticed your vile poisons don't work on my axes ey? In this alien world such things like elemental attacks aren't as effective but don't think it will hamper me one bit!" Her piece spoken the Toa raised her axes up high in an attempt at an overhanded strike, leaving her open to be struck in her chest armor by Melt.

After skidding to a halt, the Toa stood, mask aglow and her armor completely undamaged. Melt's eyes narrowed before speaking, "So why does such a high and mighty Toa want to pick a fight with me? I haven't done anything to incite such animosity."

"Your mere existence is an insult! You may not remember but your parasitic essence killed my brothers all on the whims of that cursed Makuta. Add to the fact that I have gleaned information of your personality from observation of your actions and free floating data around us. You are a fundamentally corrupt abomination whose hedonistic personality would do better not ever seeing the light of day." Taking the two axes and lining their pommels together, the righteous Toa slotted both weapons into one another forming a larger hand axe that glowed a deep indigo color. Water coated the blade and expanded, forming a blade of water that aligned and flowed with the axe. The length and width of the elemental blade gave it the impression of a great sword. "I will end your existence here and now."

Taking a few one handed test swings the azure warrior took a stance familiar to the Alter Ego, though she couldn't quite put a finger on it. Taking her thoughts off that peculiarity Melt responded to the challenge with a stance of her own. They made eye contact and Melt noticed something. Besides the rage that dominated the Toa's judgement in those yellow eyes there was something underneath. Melt wouldn't be able to make sense of that detail as with a proclamation of "En Garde!" courtesy of Mira, the fight continued in a much more aggressive and fast paced manner.

* * *

Location: Metru Nui Great Colosseum

It had been an awkward affair, thought Toa Naho. Though there were the rounds of greetings between the Toa and the meeting itself, which completed all that they set out for during this gathering, there wasn't much else. _"For vowing to protect Metru Nui as a team, we aren't all that enthused at being back in the city together and performing our sworn duty" _Came a cynical inner voice.

Taking a moment to purge such negative thoughts, Toa Naho focused on the more positive aspects gleaned from this meeting. Bordakh reports state that the stream of Rahi were coming only from the direction Ga Metru's beaches were facing. This convenience allowed for a more concentrated force of Toa and Vahki to form up to stem the tide of Rahi. If the stream didn't let up within a day or two, a force of Vahki would be ready with a Toa escort to seal the portion of the Great Barrier where these Rahi were coming from. This was nowhere near as complicated as getting the Kanohi Dragon out of the Great Furnace.

Despite bring up the positives, Naho's thoughts drifted back towards the reason for this awkward silence among her Toa Team. Ever since the Toa Dark Hunter War, much of the Toa Mangai had felt alienated and uncomfortable residing within Metru Nui. They had always been distant from the inhabitants, living closer to the Great Barrier than the actual city. The only ones that actually resided in the city proper were Lhikan, Nidhiki, and Tuyet. The latter two had betrayed Metru Nui, Tuyet in the events leading up to the war with her murdering of Matoran building tension between Metru Nui and the Dark Hunters, and Nidhiki during the war when he sought to betray and have his fellow Toa potentially killed in an ambush by Dark Hunters.

After the betrayal of two of their protectors and the lack of communication with the Toa besides Lhikan, the Toa and Matoran had mutually cut themselves entirely from one another. Now, after meeting Lhikan face to face and seeing his weariness during the meeting, she felt guilty for leaving the Toa of Fire alone to deal with the politics and negotiation between Metrus.

...

...

...

The travel in the Chute System was silent as she looked at the backs of her fellow Toa and Chronicler Kodan, who had joined with Lhikan as they left the Colosseum.

Naho had been the one accompanying Lhikan on a mission before they were called by a damaged, but still functioning Vahkhi to stop the Kanohi Dragon all those thousands of years ago. Back then, they were at arm's length due to Lhikan's silent mourning for a tragedy she, to this day, had no knowledge of. This trip took her back to those times, both silent companions approaching a city in an uproar.

Upon seeing the passing by the instantly recognizable smoke stacks of Ta Metru, her gaze refocused as the group approached Ga Metru.

* * *

Location: Within Meltilith's Head

The clashing of blades echoed throughout the digital sea that was Melt and Mira's joint minds. Their clash took them throughout the spiral landscape with none being capable of attaining an advantageous position over the other.

It was during this fight that two things clicked in the Alter Ego's head. At first something within her desired to negotiate, to call off the battle and to talk it out with the aggressive Toa of Water. She found that she couldn't, she was simply having too much fun and that oppressive feeling suppressed that rational train of thought completely. A name came to her mind -**Sadistic Constitution**-. Her combat judgement was beginning to slip up and Melt now had to reign in herself more and more before making an attack.

The second was why, throughout her fighting, that she found the Toa's disposition and combat style so familiar. An image of a blonde haired- not biomechanical- man donning silver armor and wielding a flaming sword came to mind. Though she couldn't name him, the memory of the man's style gave her a certain level of understanding on how to better defend against her present foe's fighting style.

As they clashed again and again, Melt realized that this fight was never going to get anywhere, both her and her opponent weren't going to tire anytime soon. Observing the structure she was fighting on, she began a long term play to spread her virus onto the floor itself.

The entirety of the spiral structure they fought upon was a bit structurally fragile. With the poisons of her virus seeping into the the blocks it was only a matter of time for the structure to collapse on itself.

During a clash that was to be decided upon a contest of physical might, the structure fell apart. In that moment of brief panic both made eye contact before Melt began to jump up onto the falling pieces. It was an effort to not only lessen the eventual impact but to maintain the high ground against Mira. The Toa of Water simply allowed herself to fall. A barrier of energy surrounded her. Her Great _Kanohi __Hau _would protect her from the inevitable impact with the ground below.

Landing with a resounding thud that scattered the digital sand every which way, the former guardian Toa looked up and around for her enemy. She found no sight of her and such a circumstance made the Toa raise her guard. It was the whizz of a blade and the split second reaction of raising her Mask of Protection's shield that saved her from being beheaded. Smiling under her Hau, Mira readied a counterattack but a cracking sound shocked her. A chuckle and smug voice responded to her unspoken question, "I finally remembered the name of my poison, **Melt Virus**." With recognition on what the ice blue liquid precisely was, the power of the virus increased exponentially.

The shield Mira conjured up shattered like glass as the Toa attempted to maintain distance from the strengthened combatant, but it was all for naught as a spout of water launched the Toa. Slashes began to pepper the helpless armored warrior as she was sent skyward. At the top was where the yellow eyes opened and widened fully form the furious assault. As Melt burst from the water froth. The clothed combatant's blade legs were aglow, the acrobatic dancer readying herself to drop kick and deal the finishing blow to Mira.

It was a moment of hesitation born of a realization. The technique Meltlilith attempted to perform, the name wouldn't reach her. This startling realization caused her to stall in her attack. Taking advantage of this small moment of hesitation, Mira attempted to strike, sending forth her great sword of water through the chaotic water and towards the fleshy combatant. As the blade nearly reached its mark in the exposed belly of the Alter Ego, the world was plunged into darkness.

* * *

Location: Unknown

She was caught in a haze, yet still, she wanted attention. She wanted to interact with someone, anyone, but anytime she approached the creatures floating around her, they swam off. They were teasing her, bullying her. She couldn't tolerate that. This feeling of resentment and…. Pleasure? Could not stand. They could just… disappear.

It was during her rampage did something else, massive, stir. It opened its large eyes and its massive jaws as it swam to meet the invader in its territory. It would be the single most fatal mistake as the female entity opened her deformed claws, amalgamated by her consumption of aquatic Rahi.

First came half of its face, Compressed. Its right pectoral fin, compressed. Its left pectoral fin, compressed. Its tail, compressed. Its pelvic fin compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed. Compressed…

* * *

Location: Unknown

The black and silver puppet awoke with a start. Her ice blue eyes adjusted to the poor lighting and found herself in some sort of seaside cave, the sand and wetness being a blatant indicator of this setting. A fire was burning from dried driftwood beside her. It was the sole source of heat and light in this cave. There was a shuffling of sand and her gaze turned towards the cave entrance. The darkness and stars made it apparent that it was night time.

That view though, became obstructed as a looming figure entered the cave. The light showed a tarnished, yellow green biomechanical humanoid. Upon his face was a mask with 4 openings that exposed the metallic grey head behind the mask. Orange red eyes stared at her ice blue as a male voice came from the unknown's mouth, "Before you ask, I am Lesovikk, a wanderer. Now that I have introduced myself, why don't you share with me the same courtesy?"

* * *

**Leave feedback in reviews**


	5. Chapter 5

So this is a notice that I will be rewriting this story. I've removed chapters past 4 **and have rewritten chapters 1-4**. The reason why I'm doing this is because I started this story with less than a cohesive plan. This sort of came to a head when I tried going at writing the finale for the Broken Dolls arc and just hit a massive roadblock. I just had a large inventory of ideas for what I wanted to write for this story and now that I've written a good chunk of it, I would like to just go back and reorganize ideas and set a pace that I find suits this fanfic better.

I will be removing this notice when the next chapter comes up. As always, feedback is appreciated and have a good day.


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